Moss Motors, Ltd

Hi,

 I am new to forum and this is my first British car. IIt has taken me a while to find one in reasonably good shape so I am very excited and will have it on the road soon. I have two questions if any one can help me. 

1. I have a strange vin which begins with HUN several numbers and end with the letter "p".  From everything that I have read, I cannot come up with a vin that starts this way.  Any information on vins for my 1968 Sprite are greatly appreciated.

2.  I have been scouting for a owners handbook as I am learning about the controls on the dash panel and how they operate.  Can't seem to find a guide.  Most of the switches are self explanitory, however, some I am not sure of.  If anyone can provide a guide to the switches, that would be great.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Marty 

 

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Marty
1968 Sprite MK IV 1275cc

Congratulations on the '68 Sprite, Marty! I have one of those too!

The hard-copy (as opposed to the cyber copy) of the Moss catalog has a section on deciphering the VIN numbers. Have you checked that yet?

On to the switches....

On the dash, left to right...The blower fan switch - either on or off (one speed) - - On the steering column cowl, left side, is a toggle switch for the dashboard lights - - On the right is the headlight switch, one click for parking lights and two clicks for the headlights.

The lever switch on the left of the dash cowl is multi-function. Pull toward you to momentarily flash high and low beams simultaneously, push away from you to turn on high beams. Push the lever switch in (toward the column) to beep the horn. Up and down for directionals.

The lever switch on the right of the column is the wiper switch- two speeds here, slow and not as slow! Push that lever in for the washer pump.

All the way on the left side of the dash is the heater air control. If turned counter-clockwise, the fresh air in will be on - clock-wise turns the fresh air off. There is no temperature control in the cockpit. Hot water to the heater matrix is controlled via a brass valve, just behind the valve cover under the bonnet.  

As far as a REAL owners manual, EBay usually has that stuff but you can also buy the "Heritage Motor Centre" CD ROM from Moss. Among original service and parts guides, they have a PDF of the original owner's book too. (well at least the one I bought for my '76 Midget does).

Good luck with the car...I'm sure that you'll enjoy it! 

 

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On their death bed, nobody ever said, "Gee I wish I'd spent more time at work!"

'68 Sprite 1275
'76 Midget 1500

Thanks Davey,

 This helps a lot.  The horn really had me scratching my head.  I have a lot to learn:-) but I am really happy with the car.  As for the valve (looks like a plumbing water valve:-)) do you turn it on and leave it or do you need to remember to turn it off when you park the car?  I am sorry for all of the questions but these neat little car are a little different from the american cars.I don't anticipate driving the car much during cold weather but there may be times a little heat would be nice.   

 I will check out the CD rom and review the vin break down too.

 Thanks much for your help.

Marty.

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Marty
1968 Sprite MK IV 1275cc

The valve is cute, isn't it?

I leave it on almost all the time. I will close it during the summer "dog days" when I'm 100% positive that I will not be requiring any heat at all.

You can control the flow of hot air at your feet by closing the spring-loaded flap doors. They are located by the driver's right knee or passenger's left knee. Take a look if you haven't already found them. 

There is no gate control of the defroster air other than the fresh air inlet control on the dashboard. Those defrosters are piped directly to the heater box, so you will always have air flowing through them if either the fan or air inlet control are on. 

By the way, ditto on that horn. My first car was a '68 Sprite that I bought in 1976. It took me a month to finally find that horn button, which I actually found by accident while cleaning the car!

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On their death bed, nobody ever said, "Gee I wish I'd spent more time at work!"

'68 Sprite 1275
'76 Midget 1500

Thanks again Davey,

You have been a great help.  This forum is great. I am sure I will have other questions down the road.  Hope to have the car back from my mechanic this week.  I needed to have the carbureators sorted out and new rear brakes installed.  Things like oil changes and other light duty maintenance I plan to do myself.  I also plan to use an Octaine Booster and Lead additive in the fuel.   This seems to be reccomended by a lot of folks. Moss seems to have everything needed to keep these cars running including the additives.  The previous owner installed the Rivergate Datsun five speed tranny.  I have read a lot about them and all of the information seems positive.  The five speed tranny seems to help the car run better and lower the RPMs.  Once the carburetors and rear brakes are sorted out, I think I am ready for the road as everything else seems to be in fine working order.  Anything else you can think of that might be helpful to a novice is greatly appreciated.  Thanks again.

 

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Marty
1968 Sprite MK IV 1275cc

Believe it or not, you do NOT need that lead additive.

What you DO need however is much more important! An engine oil additive called ZDDP is required for your flat tappet engine. Without it, your tappets will die an early death! ZDDP used to be a common component of all oils on the market, but it was silently removed a few years ago, the trouble is, you need the stuff!

There are some oils that have re-introduced it. I've heard that Castrol for high mileage cars has it, and there were a few others. I'm not sure which ones though.

I buy the additive from Moss, and throw it in with every oil change. I guess you can research which oils have it, or do it my way, but in any case, you DO need ZDDP in that sump!

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On their death bed, nobody ever said, "Gee I wish I'd spent more time at work!"

'68 Sprite 1275
'76 Midget 1500

Amen to what Davey pointed out - everyone with a Brit car made prior to the early '90's must pour in a ZDDP oil additive, whether from a separate bottle or pre-mixed with a "classic car" oil product.  Otherwise, your camshaft lobes will quickly be worn away. $$$.  Replace the tires regardless of tread wear if they're over 6-7 years old.  There's a long list of horrer stories out there with guys having catastrophic tire failure and wrecks due to brittle old tires.  A 10-year old tire is an accident waiting to happen.

Next, start reading.  Learn the history of the British sports car industry and where your car fits into the grand scheme of things.  Purchase the shop manual, a restoration manual (excellent advice even if you're not planning to), and a book or CD with MG history.  Lots of historical stuff on the internet, too.  This link is one of the best I've found for both the "big picture" and specifics on a particular make and model.  Fascinating reading!

http://austin-rover.co.uk/

Enjoy the car!

Hello,

 Thank you all.  I've read about  ZDDP and it's importance.  Great advice which I will follow.  Again, great forum:-)

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Marty
1968 Sprite MK IV 1275cc